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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. clip — a video
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. foot — a measure
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. clip — for paper
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. vault — a safe
  14. rule — government
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. rule — a law
  19. fall — to drop
  20. clip — to cut
  21. fall — the season
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — a box

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com